In what was evidently a strange convergence of energy from the sports gods, four injured All-Stars returned to their respective teams Wednesday with just two weeks left before the the NBA playoffs begin.

Isn’t this why we love professional sports?

• A funny thing happened just hours after Mavericks coach Avery Johnson said it looked like it would require more time before Dirk Nowitzki would return from the left ankle and knee injury he suffered on March 23 in a loss to the Spurs … he started. Nowitzki scored 18 points in 27 minutes during the huge 111-86 win over the Warriors, moving the Mavs alone into seventh place in the West. The Mavs were 2-3 since the injury, but now have a two-game lead and the tie-breaker over the ninth-place Warriors and a one-game lead over the eighth-place Nuggets, who also have the tie-breaker with the sliding W’s.

• Nobody has known what to think about Gilbert Arenas, who has been talking for six weeks that he would return from November surgery on his left knee, but Wednesday night was it for Agent Zero. He came off the bench to score 17 points in 19 minutes for the Wizards in a bizarre, 110-109 loss to the Bucks during which teammates Antawn Jamison (sprained right shoulder) and DeShaun Stevenson (sprained right ankle) were helped off the floor after a scramble for the ball with 6.3 seconds left. The result dripped with irony, not only because it was Arenas’ return, but both Caron Butler (strained hamstring) and Antonio Daniels (sprained wrist) returned after missing a game with injuries as well … so much for the full compliment of players that coach Eddie Jordan was expecting.

• Everything returned to normal for the Lakers when Pau Gasol made his first appearance since suffering an ankle sprain on March 14. He played 32 minutes, contributing 10 points, 7 assists and 6 rebounds in the 104-91 win over the Blazers – a huge lift considering the Lakers were 5-5 since he got hurt. They remain just 1.5 games out of the top seed in the West, and have the third seed with first place in the Pacific Division, a game ahead of the Suns.

• And in perhaps the biggest surprise of all, Clippers forward Elton Brand entered the game midway through the first quarter against Seattle, playing for the first time since suffering a torn Achilles tendon in the summer. Predictably rusty, Brand scored 13 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter as the Clippers came from behind to run away from the Sonics, 102-84, to end an eight-game road losing streak.

Brand’s move was typical of a quality guy not only showing that he wanted to play when he was ready, but also that he’s worth every penny to someone as a player and a leader if he does opt out of his contract this summer.

But the biggest boon certainly is the return of Nowitzki and what this game did for the Mavs and Warriors in divergent circumstances. Left for dead by so many critics, this was the second win in a row for the Mavs, and certainly the commentary by Johnson earlier in the day about Nowitzki’s status came at the expense of his mentor in gamesmanship – Warriors coach Don Nelson. The Mavs, who still have to travel this weekend to play the Suns and Lakers, suddenly are loaded with momentum after beating their first over-.500 team since acquiring Jason Kidd 22 games ago. They were 0-10 before Wednesday night, but Nowitzki’s return further girded this group – as Kidd had 17 assists compared to just 10 for the Warriors as a team in the game.

That statistic was reflective of how the Warriors have come apart of late. They’ve lost three of their last four and five of eight to slide out of what looked like a strong seventh place. Not only do they lose the tie-breakers to the Mavs and Nuggets, but they’ve lost two in a row for the first time since the Jan. 2-4, and only the second time since an 0-6 start with captain Stephen Jackson suspended. Furthermore, after 37 consecutives games of 100 points or more as the highest scoring team in the league, they had just 86 against the Mavs after managing only 92 in a 24-point loss to the Spurs Tuesday. Jackson, not coincidentally, was 1-for-11 with 2 points against the Mavs and 2-for-12 with a pair of 3-pointers against the Spurs. Eight points in two games won’t do for Captain Jack, averaging 20.4 for the season.

Where they go from here, with a game at Memphis Friday and the road trip ending at New Orleans on Sunday, is anybody’s guess. They do finish the season with four of their last five games at home with a game at Phoenix in between, so this thing could turn again depending on the Mavs and Nuggets. Of the four home games, the Nuggets are the only winning team, with the Clippers, Kings and Sonics the other three.

The Wizards’ position in the East is just as shaky – although they are far from falling out of the playoffs in the less competitive conference. However, the loss dropped them from the fifth seed pushing the Cavaliers for home court into a three-way tie for fifth with the Raptors and Sixers – three games ahead of the eighth-place Hawks – and light years (OK, seven games) ahead of the Nets and Pacers. The status of Jamison and Stevenson is huge moving forward – not only for the remaining seven games but for the playoffs.

As for the Lakers, they’re still waiting for 20-year-old starting center Andrew Bynum to return from the knee injury that has sidelined him Jan. 13. They are hopeful over the next few days, and obviously they’d love for him to play at least a handful of games before the playoffs.

Nobody figured this first Wednesday in April would be so significant, so you never know.